


the stars pardon you of your sins

by derseroyalty



Category: Banana Bus Squad
Genre: Gang AU, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-26
Updated: 2018-06-20
Packaged: 2019-04-27 03:50:22
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 13,990
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14417058
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/derseroyalty/pseuds/derseroyalty
Summary: Evan’s untouchable in the shadows, and he doesn’t even know it.Luckily for him, someone’s always going to watch his back no matter what it takes.





	1. the crows are not what they seem

**Author's Note:**

> taking a quick break from my other three stories, as the end of the school year is upon me!!!! I've been super busy and stressed out because I rlly want to exempt every single exam. :')
> 
> so far, I'm in the clear, and that means I might go back to a better updating schedule when I get out early on June 1st. I graduate June 11th!
> 
> I also have a prom date I'm so happy he said yes <333

If you had asked Evan Fong what his idea of a Saturday was, it wasn’t being robbed at a bank around 10:30 in the morning.

But, as usual with his luck, that was exactly what was happening. 

Standing in the Los Santos Bank was never the highlight of anyone’s morning, and here he was standing with his friend and roommate Brock as they waited for the line to move. Brock, with his casual outfit on as he yawns, glances over at Evan. “Wanna catch some breakfast after this?” He offers, giving him a small smile.

Evan grins at him. “Yeah dude! I’m up for some pancakes. Think we can make it to IHOP before they cancel the breakfast?”

“I’m pretty sure it’s going on all day.”

Right as Evan opens his mouth again, the door bursts open and three masked figures rush into the room. “GET DOWN!” A man with a devil’s mask shouts. “GET THE FUCK DOWN!”

Brock drops to the ground while Evan keeps on standing, glaring angrily as a guy with an omega blindfold marches up to him. “What, you think you’re some kind of tough guy?” He snarls before slamming his gun into Evan’s stomach. 

Evan hits the ground with a loud “OOF” as he winces, slightly winded as Brock crawls over to make sure he’s alright. “What are you doing?!” Brock hisses, eyes wide as the omega guy points a gun at him. 

The final member of their crew, a man with a Jason Voorhees mask, takes one look at Evan and bursts out laughing. “Ohmwrecker, you better step away from Mr. Fong before the entire city is after you.”

The man, apparently named Ohm, immediately freezes and stares in horror at the Jason copycat. “W-What?”

The devil guy looks over and snickers, still pointing his gun at the bank teller. “He’s untouchable, idiot. Leave him alone and help me get some money.”

Still shaken, Evan stares in shock as Ohm turns away and threatens someone else. As the three vanish into the vaults, one of the bank tellers shouts for everyone to leave as fast as they can.

Brock grabs Evan’s hand and drags him along, fear and adrenaline keeping the two of them going. “Wait!” Evan yelps as Brock nearly trips over the sidewalk. “What did they mean by untouchable?”

“I don’t know,” Brock pants, “but it kept us alive today and that’s all that matters. We gotta get out of here!!”

The two run to Evan’s car and Brock jumps into the driver’s seat, hands shaking as he starts the engine. In the distance, sirens echo throughout the city, and Evan twists around in the passenger seat to spot the Jason Voorhees guy making his escape with the other two gang members and a bag of cash in his hand. 

The two lock eyes, and the masked man just grins and waves. 

_Fucking hell._

Evan turns back and exhales, eyes wide as Brock floors it away from the robbed bank. 

_What the fuck just happened back there?_

* * *

A week after the incident, Evan pulls up outside the middle school where his little brother’s at. He drums on the steering wheel and looks outside, smiling as he spots his little bro skateboarding out of the doors. 

With his dyed white hair and hilarious nickname, Evan can’t help but laugh as his ridiculous brother throws him a peace sign with his 3D glasses. “Hey, Smitty!” Evan smiles as he opens the door and hops in.

“Hey Ev,” Smitty grins as he sets his skateboard in the backseat. “Can we go to the skate park? I’m gonna meet John there.” 

“Of course kiddo,” Evan starts the engine and heads off, letting Smitty turn up the radio. Some pop song starts playing and Smitty pretends to play the guitar, hands in the perfect position as he'd been watching Evan play for a while.

Evan adored his younger brother. Lucas was an enigma; some days he wouldn’t say a word unless it was to his older brother, and some days he’d be warm and open to anything.

Apparently today was a warm day as Smitty seems perked up. “Did you know that sloths sometimes grab their arms thinking it’s a branch and then they plummet to their death?” Smitty asks, eyes alight with humor. 

Evan grins as he turns down the street to the skate park, setting the car into park and letting Smitty get out. “Did you learn that at school?”

“Nah, Kyroz told me.” 

As Smitty gets his skateboard out, another kid skates up with unruly white hair. His roots are still a deep brown and Evan offers a small wave. “Hi, John.”

John grins and waves back with a lot of rings on his painted nails. “Hi Evan. Mind if I steal your brother for a bit?”

“As long as you don’t break the law, be my guest.” Evan gestures to the park and the two immediately set off, laughing and telling jokes as they skate away. 

He leans on the hood of his car, sighing and relaxing as he thinks about his life. Evan Fong was 24 years old, going for his Master’s degree in physics, and currently worked at the library on his campus with his best friend Brock. 

He took care of Lucas after his parents left and he had a steady income, able to take care of himself and his brother. Brock made sure Smitty was okay when Evan got too stressed and had to take care of his own health.

And now he had almost gotten robbed at a bank, but something saved his life and he wasn’t sure what it was yet. 

“Hello again, sweet cheeks!” A man’s voice cooed next to him. On instinct, Evan throws a right hook and gasps as it’s immediately caught. In his face is the masked man with the Jason Voorhees mask. 

_This is it,_ Evan thinks to himself. _This is how I die._

The man looks delighted at Evan’s expression—or maybe he does, since the mask obscurs his face. “What, did you think I’d kill you?”

“...Yes?” Evan offers as he wrenches his fist out of the man’s grasp. “Who the hell are you and what do you want with me?”

The man shrugs and looks over at his supposed target. “If I wanted you dead, you would be. Anyways, do you have any makeup remover wipes?”

Since the man isn’t apparently going to kill him, Evan nervously moves to his car and grabs a pack from the glove compartment. “Here you go.”

“Thanks!” The man says happily. To Evan’s shock, he removes the mask and reveals radiant clown makeup. Bright blue eyes wink at him as the man wipes his face down, grinning at the rainbow splash on the wipes. “I feel kinda better, but I gotta apply it again before we go rob something. Maybe we’ll kill someone next time?”

“Who are you?” Evan whispers. 

The man gives him a peace sign. “I’m Delirious! Hitman, robber, murderer, uh, whatever really falls under those categories. You’re a very special case, Owl Boy.”

“Owl?” Evan scrunches his nose up. “Is it because of the bracelet?”

Sitting on Evan’s wrist was a golden bracelet that had an owl insignia. It was his birthday present from Smitty and Evan cherished it greatly. Delirious points at it. “Yeah! Hold on, Owl Boy kinda sucks. How about Vanoss?”

“Vanoss…” Evan rolls the name around on his tongue. “Wait, why do I need a codename? I’m assuming Delirious is also a codename. Am...am I being tracked?”

“Sort of,” Delirious admits. His scruffy brown hair and blue eyes make him seem like a normal passerby that a few would take a glance at. “Everyone in a gang knows about you. Not to kill you, but to keep you safe.”

The setting sun glows a vivid orange and pink in the distance. Kids and teens play excitedly at the park, laughing loudly and doing whatever kids do. The pond nearby ripples with movement as a flock of ducks float on by, quacking at anything near them. 

Evan’s deadly silent. Delirious cocks his head a bit. _I can see why he’s a top priority,_ the assassin thinks in admiration. _I’d be pretty impressed if he was in a gang. No wonder that dumbass still likes him._

“You alright?” Delirious prompts. “I’d be pretty excited that a lot of gangs are gonna keep me safe, that’s a really high honor—”

“WHY AM I ON A GANG’S LIST TO BE SAFE?!” Evan shrieks. “Am I going to be KILLED?! I got shit to do!! A brother to provide for! A best friend to take care of!”

Delirious takes his hands out of his blue hoodie and shushes Evan. “Listen dude, I know you’re scared, but take a chill pill. You’re under the protection of a lot of popular gangs, mine included. Those guys you met at the bank are named Cartoonz and Ohmwrecker. They’re the most trustworthy people I know.”

Evan, breathing heavily, tries to suck in several breathes and gasps as his airways open. “I think I’m hyperventilating.”

Delirious shrugs. “I think you are too. It’s all good though. Don’t worry about it!”

Evan glares angrily at him. “Several gangs have me on their lists, a mere civilian, to keep safe, and it seems as though I’m on a hit list from someone high up. I’m gonna worry about it.”

The gang member laughs at that. “Okay, I’ll give you that one. I’m not authorized to tell you who it is, but the guy high up wants to make sure you’re safe. I doubt that’s gonna change anytime soon.” 

Nearby, bushes rustle, and Delirious tenses up. Evan’s immediately on guard as well, eyes darting over to the baton he keeps under his seat. “Hold on,” Delly murmurs, slipping the mask back on. “Let me handle this.”

Before Delirious can do anything, someone erupts from the undergrowth with a battle cry. Evan leaps into action and throws open his door, grabbing the baton from its spot in his car. He dashes back around as Delirious yells something inaudible as he wrestles with the man.

_WHACK!_

"What the fuck?!" The other guy yells as he lets go of Delly, clutching his shoulder. He has sandy brown hair, several shades lighter than Delirious, and eyes that seem to swim between brown and red. "Who the hell are you talking to?"

"The guy the entire mob has been talking about," Delirious mocks the man, grinning at Evan's baton. "Get the fuck up, Terroriser. You're in the company of a royal."

Terroriser looks up and pales, forgetting about his shoulder pain for a moment. "For fuck's sake. It's Evan, right?"

Evan sighs and sets the baton back in the car. "Am I just going to have to get used to people knowing my name?"

Delirious grins and helps Terroriser up. "As long as we're in his presence, we've got a minor truce. Call him Vanoss if you're around Daithi and Calibre." Delly tells him. "If he gets harmed, the big boss comes after our gang and we're fucked."

"Who the hell is the boss?" Evan protests. "If he's keeping me safe, then who the hell is he?"

Terroriser tries not to laugh. "It's probably best if you don't know right now. If you're going to be hanging around, I'm Brian. It's nice to meet you, Ev."

"Likewise. Sorry for hitting you with a baton." Evan shakes his hand, trying not to think about how weird his life had become. "I should get home soon, it's almost dinner time."

"Oh! Here's my number." Delirious rattles off some quick numbers and gives him a peace sign. "If you need anything, let me know."

"Us too," Brian offers. "I have a small gang with a few people as well, and we'll do our best to keep ye safe. If there's any issues, we'll know." 

"...Thanks." Evan manages as the two turn around. Delly pauses and turns back. "When the time is right," he promises, "we'll take you to the boss. He's not ready yet."

Brian disappears into the setting sun while Delirious melts into the shadows. Evan, still stunned, doesn't hear Smitty skating up to him with John right on his heels. "Hey!" Smitty smiles at his older brother. "You alright?"

Evan nods without saying anything. 

Smitty and John exchange glances. They had obviously seen the two guys next to him, and had overheard the last bit of their conversation due to their preteen curiosity. "So..." Smitty says hesitantly. "Can we get McDonald's?"

At that, Evan jerks back to attention and finally replies. "Yeah. Let's go."

Later that night, after they drop John off with his chicken nuggets and Smitty goes back to the small apartment Evan got him, Evan gets a single text as he's lying in bed. 

;): sleep well, sleeping beauty! let's hope other gangs don't get too curious about u kiddo, wouldn't want the wrath of wildcat on the city 

Evan tries not to shake from the implication of kidnapping and quietly saves the contact as Delirious, looking over at Brock. His roommate and best friend was passed out happily in his bed, snoring softly from a productive day. "Wildcat," Evan whispers into the silent air. It's a name that hums in his throat and it sounds so incredibly familiar. _And this guy knows me...? I have no idea who this could be._

Friends from high school were ruled out. He was never close to them, as he was busy dealing with Smitty. He did end up in a few relationships along the way, dating girls and guys but eventually breaking them off because he couldn't do it. 

Now Smitty was a few months from entering freshman year of high school and Evan was still single. He goes through the names in his head. _Sydney, Adam, I dated that girl Melina for about a month or two, and then..._

Oh fuck.

He jerks upright, eyes wide and suddenly awake as he scrambles out of bed. In his haste to grab his jacket, he wakes up Brock who yawns sleepily. "Evan?" His best friend mumbles. "Are you alright?"

"Wildcat," Evan breathes out. "Brock, didn't I date a guy named Tyler in my senior year?"

Brock, still dreaming, frowns and squints. "Uh, maybe? That's the guy who punched Craig Thompson's bully in the face, right?"

"And he got in a lot of trouble but he never regretted it." Evan nods. Craig had been fresh meat for bullies and Evan nearly stepped in, only to watch as his then-boyfriend readied his fists and threw hands. 

_"Why did you help him?" Evan asked him later with admiration as he patched up Tyler's wounds at the nurse's office. "Thank you for that."_

_Nearby, Craig Thompson managed a small smile and whispered a quiet thank you. Tyler snorted. "You care for a lot of people, and I figured I should do the same for once."_

_Evan had laughed loudly. "Be careful babe, you might lose your bad boy persona."_

_Tyler's blue eyes had glowed with love. "Totally worth it if I get to stay with you."_

They had split on mutual terms in the summer before Evan went to college and Tyler went to someplace he wasn't aware of. Evan had to deal with tuition and Tyler knew that college wasn't the path for him. 

_"I'll always love you," Tyler had murmured. "No matter what. Thank you for making me the happiest I've ever been."_

_Evan had pressed his lips to his and cried, knowing there wouldn't be someone like him._

"Son of a bitch," Evan exhales. "He joined a gang and rose to the top. Tyler's keeping me safe."

Brock fully wakes up at the last bit. "Wait, your high school boyfriend is keeping you safe from the gangs in the city? It's Tyler?"

"It has to be," Evan says firmly. He puts on a pair of combat boots along with his sweatpants, slipping the golden owl bracelet on. "I'm gonna find him. It has to be him."

"Wait!" Brock yelps. "What if it isn't him? What if you're wrong, Evan?"

Evan pauses, keeping his dorm door open. "Then take care of Smitty for me. If I die, I'm pretty sure Tyler will do something drastic. You'll be safe, I'll make sure of that."

Brock can only watch as Evan closes the door behind him, going to find the answers he'd been wanting for a while now. As Evan marches determinedly to his car, he punches a text message in to a certain contact and shuts the car door, revving the engine and driving off into the night.

Evan: When I find Tyler Wine, I'm going to kick his ASS. 

Delirious: thats the spirit!! good to know u figured out who big boss wildcat is, the asshole. hope it surprised you ;) 

Delirious: meet ya at the skate park again. bring a weapon. youre gonna need it. 


	2. the owl lies in wait

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ap finals are next week 
> 
> me=death
> 
> also I get out of high school in one month oh boy

Delirious is waiting for him when he arrives.

Evan’s shaking with an emotion he can’t describe when he gets out of the car; anger? Love? Denial? Whatever the case, he has to see if it really is his Tyler Wine.

Delly’s reapplied his makeup in the time span since he's seen him. The clown makes him seem sharper, more terrifying. If it works on his victims, it’s surely working on Evan. 

“Sup,” Delirious grins. He’s standing by a ramp and looking nonchalant as Evan approaches. “Bring something?”

Evan refuses to admit that he has a knife hidden in his jacket sleeve; the baton's still in his car. “Maybe. You can’t just take me into Wildcat’s area?”

“The entire city is his area,” Delirious purrs. Something seems a bit off about the assassin, like he's preparing for an attack. “We’re not doing this the easy way either. Word is out that you know about the whole ‘protecting you’ thing, but it hasn’t reached Wildcat yet. I’m gonna test him to see if he’s serious.”

Evan tenses up and tries not to draw attention to his sleeve. “What’re you gonna do?”

Delirious snaps his fingers, and a bag gets thrown over Evan’s head. The college student yells angrily and tries to grab the knife, swiping it at anything in reach. Someone steps behind him and subdues his body, forcing him to stay put. “WHAT THE FUCK?!”

“We gotta make this plausible,” Delirious sighs. “He’ll come running if his precious Vanoss is in danger. Cartoonz, you got the video camera?” 

There’s silence and Evan assumes it’s a nod, growling angrily as he feels an arm get thrown over his shoulder. The camera makes a beeping noise that shows it’s recording. 

“Sup fucker.” Delirious announces. “Miss me, Wildcat? I got your boy toy with me; I think he’ll make a wonderful addition to my gang.”

Evan snarls as Delirious grabs his arm and lifts it, showing off the golden owl on his wrist. “You know where to meet me,” Delirious cackles. “Gimme proof that he means the ‘world to you’, dumbass. See you soon.”

The recording ends and Delirious exhales. “Send that shit. Anyways, sorry Evan. We needed it to look real. I was thinking about chloroforming you, but Ohm said it was a bad idea.”

Behind Evan, the figure shrugs. “We’re trying to be friends with the guy. I’m pretty sure chloroform wasn’t the way to do it.” 

The bag gets taken off of Evan’s head; in front of him is the devil guy from the bank robbery, and the omega blindfold greets him as he turns around. “Why are you trying to bring Wildcat out?” Evan asks, eyes narrowed. “What’s the point?”

“Wildcat is high and mighty in this business,” Cartoonz huffs. “We wanna see if he has a weakness.”

“If all goes well in the next hour,” Delirious says smoothly, "he'll meet us with his partner-in-crime at our hideout."

Ohm perks up at that. "Mini's coming?" 

"Probably," Cartoonz rumbles. "Right now we have a few trusted gangs at our place that're waiting for us. Let's go!"

Evan numbly walks towards a giant truck that's parked near his car; Cartoonz gets into the driver's seat while Ohm snags passenger, leaving Delirious and Evan to take the backseat. "This sure is an interesting life you live." Evan mutters under his breath. "I really feel like there could've been an easier way."

"Maybe, but this is the fun way!" Delirious cackles. “You gotta live a little, Vanoss. Now you get to see your high school sweetheart.”

Evan grumbles and looks out the window, sighing as the streetlights flash by. Cartoonz plays some R&B, tapping out the beat on his steering wheel. Ohm hums along and laughs when Cartoonz gives him a look. 

“Are they always like this?” Evan whispers to Delirious. “An old married couple?”

The assassin grins. “I’m glad I’m not the only one to notice. You want this mask so Wildcat doesn’t recognize you? It’s gonna be hilarious when he comes storming in and he can’t recognize the love of his life.”

“Del!” Cartoonz shouts from the front. “Shut the fuck up! Leave some surprises for this idiot!”

As Delirious argues with Cartoonz and Ohm giggles, Evan eyes the owl mask in his lap. It’s a mix between orange and yellow, with a black beak and ruffled eyebrows. The eyes are a lovely golden color and Evan exhales slowly. “Where did you get this?”

“Had a friend make it,” Ohm tells him with a smile. “Here, this is one of Cartoonz’s old jackets. He outgrew it a few months ago and I think it’ll fit you really well!”

Evan catches the fabric and admires the red jacket, noticing the white stripes that seem to glow in the night. “Dude, this is fucking incredible.”

Cartoonz puffs out his chest. “I have impeccable fashion taste.”

“You’re a fucking idiot,” Delirious says wryly. “You’re also about to miss the turn for the base.”

“Shit!” The tires screech as the truck makes a sharp turn, sending the passengers jerking to the left. "My bad. I thought it was a few streets up."

The base isn't that noticeable, honestly. It looks like a lone apartment with a bunch of bedrooms, some of the lights on with movement inside. A man's waiting for them at the entrance of the first floor. 

Cartoonz parks the truck and gets out, Delirious following right behind. "You coming, Vanoss?" Ohm asks him with another smile. 

This is it. This is the turning point, no second chances and no take backs. If Evan says yes, he's going to know gang members and be involved. His life is going to deal with this; Brock will get dragged in, and so will Smitty...

Oh god, Smitty. But his brother deserves the best; if he was protected by nearly every gang in the city, that was the life Evan wanted him to have. Smitty would never have to worry about the dark again. 

"Yeah," Evan says, slipping on the owl mask and getting out of the truck.

The man on the front porch looks familiar; Cartoonz mutters a hello and the guy nods, jolting up when he sees Evan. "Vanoss!" He exclaims. "It's me again!"

Evan recognizes the reddish eyes and grins at him. "Hello, Terroriser."

"He actually remembers me!" Brian gasps. "He's doing better than you lot, you bitches!"

"Shut the fuck up Brian!" The chorus of voices echo from the apartments. "Bring Vanoss in," Delirious hollers from the doorway. "And for the love of god, try to calm Basically down. He's being a bitch."

"He's always a bitch," Brian mutters. He looks over the Canadian with raised eyebrows. _Good build, gorgeous eyes, seems both book and street smart._ Brian admires Evan. _He's got an aura of confidence about him. Yeah, he's a good match for Wildcat._

"Let's go Ev," Brian sighs as he escorts the owl inside. "There's a decent amount of people wanting to meet you."

Vanoss raises an eyebrow and heads in, blinking to adjust to the lights. A TV glows alongside a video game console, four men playing on Switches. The screen's split up into Mario Kart; as Evan watches, a very tall lanky guy yells in excitement and nearly slams the controller. "YES!" He screams, zooming into first. A man with a panda hat cackles as he gets second; someone in a casual gray t-shirt sits in third and a man with an Adventure Time hat roars as fourth flashes on his screen.

“FUCK YOU GUYS!” The Finn hat guy screeches. “Daithi and Scott teamed up on me, that’s BULLSHIT!”

“I wanted Anthony to get not last place,” the tall guy chuckles. “What place did you get?”

“SECOND!” The panda guy hollers. “Kiss my ass Marcel!”

Evan tries not to laugh as he stands awkwardly in the corner. Delirious strides past him and places his hands on his hips, beaming proudly at the groups. “Welcome, assholes! So who’s in a gang here?”

“It’s me, Lui, and Brian.” The tall guy answers. The panda hat guy puffs his chest out. “Me, Marcel, and Scotty.”

Next to Evan, Ohm’s phone buzzes, and the blindfolded guy winces when he sees the message. “Mini says that Wildcat’s pissed. They’re on their way.”

Everyone immediately tenses up and they all catch sight of Evan at the exact same time. “Is...is that him?” Panda hat guy asks. 

The tall guy gets up and extends his hand out to the masked owl. “Hello!” He greets him. “I’m Nogla, or known as Daithi. It’s nice to meet you!”

“Likewise,” Evan shakes his hand. “I’m a bit surprised that all of you are being nice to me, considering I have a mob boss’s attention.”

“It’s the reason why,” the panda hat calls out. “Hi, I’m Anthony, and that’s Marcel and Scotty.” He points at the other two members of their Mario Kart group. 

Evan nods in greeting at the other two and heads on over to sit down next to Anthony. “How long before Wildcat gets here?” He asks, nervously looking around the room. Cartoonz stands near Ohm and Delirious, quietly talking to them. 

Anthony shrugs. “Who knows. We don’t know what Delirious did to get his attention, but if Mini’s texting Ohm then that means it was something drastic. What’d he do?”

“Pretended that he kidnapped Vanoss to be in his gang,” Brian walks over. “The video’s going viral in our group chat. Wildcat’s _pissed.”_

“He’s always pissed, that’s nothing new.” Marcel rolls his eyes, slinging an arm around Scotty. “We don’t get to see him that often but when we do, he’s yelling about something.”

“That sounds familiar!” Nogla laughs, and squawks as Marcel rushes him with a yell. 

Evan watches their group with fondness. “Are you guys naturally this close?” He asks Anthony. “It seems like this is just one big gang.”

Anthony shakes his head, although his smile betrays him. “We ended up lucky. We all have turf next to each other, and some of us are pretty nice so we befriended Lui’s gang. Between you and me though, we’re all considering to join with theirs.”

“What about Delirious?” Evan glances over at the assassin. He’s cackling at something Cartoonz said, not once looking at the door. “He seems...eccentric.”

“He sure the hell is,” Anthony comments. “Delirious is the one person we don’t know anything about, other than Wildcat. Mini helps keep his shit locked up and safe. Cartoonz has known Delirious for a really long time but there’s still nothing about his past.”

“And there won’t ever be,” Delirious says from the other side of the room. His ocean blue eyes burn dangerously from behind the mask. “Get your shit ready. Wildcat’s down the street, Lui just texted me.”

Evan jolts up and frowns when Marcel laughs. “Lover boy is worried!” He snickers. “Don’t worry dumbass, you’re the only one of us that’s safe here.”

A car pulls up in the driveway and someone gets out of the driver’s seat, slamming the door so hard it seems to echo down the street. A smaller figure gets out of the passenger side and hurries next to the first figure. 

The front door nearly gets kicked in as a giant stomps his way in. Evan only notices the pig mask and helmet, briefly glancing at his zebra pants and giant fur coat that makes him seem pretty powerful.

Blue eyes burn from behind the pig mask as the man snarls, “Where the FUCK IS EVAN FONG.”

He doesn’t recognize him. 

The rush of power that Evan feels is super goddamn weird, but he’s technically in control of this situation. That’s definitely his Tyler Wine. 

Here he was, several years later, and they were face-to-face without Tyler knowing.

Delirious shrugs. “Did you really think it was Evan?”

Tyler pulls a golden gun on Delirious and Evan finally notices the person next to him. He’s wearing a casual business suit with yellow sandals on, and he’s not even wearing a mask. 

Craig Thompson turns and locks eyes with the owl. “Craig?” Evan whispers.

Craig’s jaw drops but he wisely doesn’t say anything, instead just waving a bit at his old friend. 

Tyler’s in a shouting match with Delirious, angrily gesturing and waving a baseball bat with nails in it. It looks deadly and dangerous and Evan could only imagine what pain it inflicted. "If you don't tell me where he is RIGHT THE FUCK NOW," Tyler snarls, "I swear to god I'll drive this bat so far into your skull you'll look like Glenn from the Walking Dead."

Brian pretends to wipe a tear away and sighs. "That was such a sad death. I cried for hours." Nogla nods in agreement, looking slightly downcast. 

Tyler whirls on the voice and points the bat at him. "If it isn't Terroriser, the pussy bitch who can't keep his mouth shut. How about you use that mouth for good this time; where is EVAN."

Even though he's facing down one of the deadliest bosses in the city, Brian, to his credit, gives a half-hearted shrug. "Not my place to say."

Tyler screeches and points the golden gun at everyone, wildly moving it. "WHERE IS HE?! He's on that list for a fucking reason!"

"For fuck's sake," Anthony sighs. "Wildcat, take a chill pill."

"Fuck you!" Tyler yells. His gaze locks onto Evan's and the owl's spine straightens. _Here we go. Moment of truth._

"And who the fuck are _you,"_ Tyler growls, cocking the gun. "You think you can get away with taking Evan? Are you part of Delirious's gang now?"

Evan exhales and feels Anthony try not to laugh next to him. "I don't know, Tyler," Evan shrugs as well. "I don't think I can kidnap myself, but I can try! Speaking of that, I need to text my roommate so he doesn't think I'm dead."

All the blood drains from Tyler's face. He takes off the mask to reveal scruffy brown hair and those gorgeous eyes that Evan loved with his mouth dropped. "Evan?" Tyler whispers, eyes wide with shock.

Marcel gets up and gestures to the squad. "C'mon, let's give them some room."

There's sounds of protests and a lot of whining as the gang members get dragged out of the room. Daithi refuses to leave; it's Brian who has to swipe his legs out from under him and carry him off, the other Irishman complaining as he vanishes upstairs. Craig smiles at Evan and walks off next to Ohm, quietly talking about something that makes the other laugh.

The last person in the room is Delirious. He takes off the mask and Evan's struck by those baby blues again, briefly admiring the clown makeup. "Yeah, he's for you." Delirious manages a grin. "In all my years of having rivalries and alliances with Wildcat, this is the first I've seen him speechless." 

Evan takes off the Vanoss mask and smiles back at Delirious. "Thank you," he says sincerely. "This really means the world to me."

Delirious nods and hurries from the room, slamming into Cartoonz who's waiting for him in the doorway. "So?" Cartoonz murmurs. "You feeling alright?"

The most feared assassin in Los Santos nods hurriedly and drags his brother away from the living room. "I think I'm going delirious," he whispers. "Luke, I'm going soft for him."

Cartoonz throws his head back and roars with laughter, trying to stop the tears pooling in his eyes. "You've got a soft spot for Wildcat's beau?" He cackles, clapping Delirious's back. "Jon, that'll end in a disaster."

"Not romantically!" Delirious hisses. "Fuck you. He's just...a really cool guy."

"Fair point, but we need to let them talk." Luke puts a hand on Delirious's shoulder and steers him off, still quietly laughing.

In the living room, Tyler's still staring at Evan with an emotion the latter can't decide. Evan finally sighs and gets up, gently grabbing Tyler's hand before guiding him to the couch. "C'mere, idiot." He says affectionately. "We still have a lot of shit to talk about, and I don't plan on letting you go ever again."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I finally got to go see my prom dress! it fits perfectly and I'm so excited omg <33


	3. the trees cannot reach you

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AP FINALS ARE DONE THEY'RE OVER I CAN REST IN PEACE
> 
> anyways
> 
> I hope y'alls week was nice

Tyler's changed. 

Evan can't help but stare at his former boyfriend. The man before him is tired, angry, and relieved all at once. The fur coat fluffs around his neck before Tyler relaxes, making the giant slouch and wipe his eyes. "I thought I lost you," he says raggedly. "I thought Delirious got to you."

Evan can't say anything, instead just blinking and laying a hand on Tyler's arm. The mob boss tenses up before going back to normal. "You weren't supposed to be dragged into this," Tyler whispers. "I just...Mini saw you several months ago and you almost got into a car wreck from two other gangs. I was so fucking worried. I called in so many fucking favors and placed you on the highest protection list I could use."

"It's okay," Evan whispers back, suddenly remembering the car incident. He had been on his way to get Smitty when two cars had cut him off, shooting bullets at each other. They ran the red light and almost slammed into Evan's car. Shaken, he parked and sat down on the sidewalk while Brock made sure to get his younger brother, getting him home before going to check on Evan.

Tyler shakes his head. "After everything, I thought you'd travel the world. It was like you had wings, y'know? You loved to travel and go to incredible places and I thought you'd do that. When Mini said he saw you, it fucked me up, Ev."

 _Ev._ The old nickname warms him to the core. "And when Delirious sent you the video...?"

Tyler's lip curls and he snarls, "I thought you got kidnapped. I thought I lost. Everything went dark and when I snapped out of it, I grabbed weapons and headed out. Mini joined me so I didn't do anything more reckless than usual."

"Mini...Craig?" Evan prompts, and Tyler sighs. "Yes, it's him. The idiot doesn't wear a mask. He's my partner-in-crime right now, but he mostly runs the business part while I'm the one who actually commits the crimes."

"Seems like a long story," Evan tries not to smile. "I'm just glad I was able to see you again after all this time."

Tyler's eyes soften but before he can say anything, Craig pokes his head back into the room. "Wildcat," he calls out. "We've got a situation."

Tyler growls and mutters, "We always have a situation."

The mob boss gets up and makes his way over to Craig. In the meantime, Evan takes the opportunity to pull out his phone and text his beloved roommate. 

Evan: hey brock, I'm safe so pls don't worry about me 

Evan: it rlly is tyler, he looks good 

Brock: How do I know that this is the real Evan? This could be someone trying to impersonate him. 

Evan: a girl asked you out three weeks ago and you nearly fell down the stairs and she still gave you her number 

Brock: Oh thank god, I'm glad you're okay. And hey, Lauren is gorgeous and I might actually have a chance! 

Evan smiles at his phone, not noticing Tyler's look in his direction. Craig waves his hand in front of his friend's face and sighs when he realizes what exactly he's looking at. "You lovesick idiot," he grumbles. "Dude, it's probably Brock. You remember that really nice guy that was in your grade? Straight A's, was voted nicest in senior year?"

"Oh yeah, Brock." Tyler glances back at Evan and shifts uncomfortably. "What if he's in love with someone right now? Maybe it's Brock?"

Craig rolls his eyes. "You're clueless. Did you see the look he gave you? You've got a chance, but right now you need to concentrate on this. Lanai and Simone found some info on that abandoned warehouse we've been looking at."

Tyler just glares angrily at him. "I've been wanting to see him for a very long time. Let me have this right now."

"Wildcat!" Craig hisses. "You own half of Los Santos! Step back for a moment, don't let your love life get in the way!"

Mini gasps as Tyler's hand latches onto his arm, digging his nails in. "Don't you _dare_ tell me what to do about my love life, especially when you dated Suni and it ended the way it did." He snarls. "That's on YOU. Not me. You aren't in control of my life!"

"I'm supposed to keep you safe because you're so fucking reckless!" Craig shoves Tyler away. "The near-death count for you is already at seventeen!! Chrissy's keeping track! Distractions are dangerous!"

"You were just as excited as me to see Evan again," Tyler threatens. "Don't you dare throw him under the bus."

Someone coughs and the two whirl around to see Evan standing there with his phone. "It's getting kinda late," he waves his phone at them. "I think I should go home, I've got class in a few hours. Brock's waiting for me."

Tyler nods almost immediately. "Okay. I'll take you home."

Craig opens his mouth to protest and shuts it when Tyler points the golden gun at him. "You're staying the night here with Delirious and the rest of the gangs," Wildcat says. "I'll get you in the morning."

Mini looks furious but turns away, tugging out his phone and rapidly texting someone. Tyler just sighs and waits for his former boyfriend.

Evan waves goodbye at everyone (since they're all listening and watching from the stairwell) and smiles when they wave back enthusiastically. "See ya later Evan!" Brian says happily. "You can text me if ya need it!"

The owl gives him a small salute and heads out of the house, trying to calm his nerves. Brock would meet him at the entrance of campus and now he was going to be in a car with Tyler Wine himself. Butterflies start fluttering in his stomach; fuck, he hadn't been like this in literal years. Now he was pretty sure that Craig hated him because he was a distraction. 

Would...would he have to leave again?

Tyler holds the door open for Evan, gently closing it and then making his way to the driver's seat. He tosses his pig mask, baseball bat, and gun into the backseat and sighs heavily. "I'm sorry you had to hear that," Tyler says quietly. "I'm obviously really reckless in this job, which could cost me my life. Shit, when I first started, I had no regard for anything or anyone."

"What changed?" Evan asks as the other revs the engine, backing out of the driveway. "It couldn't have been me at the time, right?"

Tyler barks out a laugh. "It's been six years since I've seen you. I nearly died in my second year of being in a gang, and then I had to keep proving myself so I wouldn't be kicked out and killed. By my third year, I made my way to the head of my gang and then I started getting more turf. Craig happened to be at a club where I was meeting an informant and he recognized me because I had to take off the mask. He knew I'd protect him in exchange for his business and people skills."

Evan nods, quiet as he relaxes in the leather seats. "So, what now?"

Tyler glances over at him and switches lanes. "What do you mean? About us?"

"Well...I've missed you a lot. Seeing you was like a breath of fresh air and I really want you to meet my brother." Evan shifts in his seat. He closes his eyes, choosing his next words carefully. "Would...would you ever consider giving up the gang lifestyle for a civilian one?"

The silence spans several minutes.

"No."

Tyler Wine was a very stubborn man. Nothing could ever change his mind, but he almost snapped when he saw the tears pool in Evan's eyes. "What?"

"How can I love you again knowing you might die today or tomorrow?" Evan breathes. "I think Craig's right. You gotta focus on protecting the rest of the guys. Please make sure they're safe, I really like them, especially Delirious and Brian. They're pretty cool."

"Evan...?" Tyler whispers, struggling to keep his eyes on the road. "What're you saying?"

"You can't be distracted by me." The owl says firmly. "You have a terrible choice to make, so I'll do it for you. You need to protect Los Santos."

Evan's campus looms in sight and Tyler frantically turns off the engine. "Wait, no, hold on. Let's talk about this."

"There really isn't anything to say," Evan shrugs, starting to open the door. "Craig's right, my dear. You need to protect Los Santos. I've been okay for this long, I think I'll be okay for now. Just please be safe for me."

Tyler shakes his head, getting out of the car as Evan closes the passenger door. "That's not it! Evan, you still mean the world to me and I don't want to let you go again. I know I live a dangerous lifestyle and I don't want to drag you into this but _please."_

Brock's waiting for him as Evan sighs, ruffling his hair and wrapping his new red and white jacket around himself. He opens the back door to grab his owl mask and startles when Tyler grabs his arm. _"Evan,"_ Tyler presses him. "I can't lose you again. You brought love into my life and I could never forget that. Please don't go. I'm begging you."

It's so late in the night that it could be considered early in the morning. Evan inhales slowly as he brings his hand up to gently grasp Tyler's, staring into his electric blue eyes. They're full of loss and love and desperation, and he cannot help himself as he leans up to slowly kiss his cheek. "I'm sorry," Evan whispers. "But I can't."

There's nothing he can do. Tyler can only watch as Evan removes himself, picks up the mask, and waves him a sad goodbye as he heads off to the guy with a rainbow tank top. 

The love of his life is gone.

Evan disappears into his dorm building with Brock and all Tyler can do is get back into his car and just sit there, staring at nothing. His fingers fly across his phone screen before he tosses the phone onto the passenger seat, starting up the engine before peeling down the street. 

Wildcat: he's gone. I hope you're happy. see you later. 

Mini: wait what???? wildcat????? 

Mini: do you mean evan??? oh fuck. oh no. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean it like that!!! 

Mini: wildcat please, we can try to figure something out. was it because of the thing I said?? 

Mini: ... 

Mini: tyler 

Mini: I'm so sorry. I'll try and make this up to you, I promise. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm emotionally fuckin wrecked over Petals and my heart will never feel warmth again
> 
> (prom's this saturday holy fuck)


	4. the stars do not know you, so look away

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter got too big so I split it, hope y’all enjoy 5 chapters instead of 4.
> 
> I've got 4 days of school left this coming week and then I graduate on June 11th, so please bear with me!
> 
> thanks everyone!
> 
> (also, I'm borrowing Lanai's text color for Smitty. 
> 
> wait a sec...if Jaclyn and Nogla are broken up, then maybe that means I can swap out the colors for him? I don't have one for Kyroz either. we'll see lmao)

Something's always going to lurk in the shadows, and Smitty doesn't know if he can help his older brother with whatever it is.

The weekends are the best. John always goes to hang out with him on Sundays, and Saturdays he spends with Evan and Brock. It's a good routine, honestly. Smitty likes having order and he loves his friends and he absolutely adores his older brother. 

But something's up. He just knows.

Saturday morning, he takes his skateboard from his small apartment and rolls onto campus. Some college kids who're heading to breakfast stop and wave for a moment, immediately recognizing the flashy white hair and the 3D glasses. Smitty was always known around campus; he was just that great. The middle schooler continues on his way and catches Brock on his way out of his dorm building. 

"Hey, Brock!" Smitty exclaims. "I was just about to go find you and Evan."

Brock nods, but it's a bit ragged as he exhales. There's dark bags under his eyes and his clothes are rumpled and shit, this looks bad. Smitty winces in empathy. "Did Lauren say no to a date or something?" He asks, looking a bit downcast. The girl with the long brown hair was always sweet to him and even once winked at the idea of dating dear sweet Brock, not that he'd say anything to the one in question! 

"Huh? No, it's not that." And Brock doesn't even jump at the mention of his crush. "There's just something else going on."

Smitty takes in the defeated stance of his friend and narrows his eyes. "What happened to Evan."

Brock waves a dismissive hand. "He's dealing with something right now and you and I can't get into the middle of it. It'll take a few days, so I’m letting him rest right now."

Smitty, ever the smartass, places a hand on his hip. “Is it from the gang members?”

Brock jerks at the mention of them and the younger boy nods. He has all the info he needs to know. “W-What? How do you know?”

“John and I saw them talking to him at the skatepark, and it didn’t seem that threatening.” Smitty gives a half-hearted shrug. “I only have one question; is he physically hurt?”

The college student just groans and shakes his head. “No, it’s emotional. Tyler said no to being a normal civilian and—never mind, Smitty. You don’t need to hear about this.”

Smitty nods again. It doesn’t really matter at this point; he’s got a plan and if John joins him, they’re unstoppable.

“Thanks anyways!” He says cheerfully as he skates off, leaving Brock looking after him with a confused look on his face.

A kid with a plan. It’s him. That’s what he’s gonna do.

Smitty knows the way to Evan’s dorm so he quietly lets himself in, letting his skateboard rest on the floor. There’s snores floating from Evan’s bed and the lump he spots just moves a bit, signaling that his older brother is still breathing.

He’s gotta be quick.

Smitty snatches Evan’s phone off the nightstand and hisses when he realizes it’s dead. He quickly plugs the phone in and impatiently taps his foot as the screen lights up with the Apple logo. Once he gets past the passcode (it’s Smitt’s birthday, of course it is), it’s game time as he taps on the messages.

An unknown number is the most recent one.

???: Vanoss, this is Mini. I need to talk to you about Wildcat. Can you please answer? 

???: Please dude, I’m really sorry. I just wanna talk. 

???: Evan please!!! 

Smitty furrows his brows as he checks the next available person. It’s a guy named Delirious and he’s apparently the one that started to help Evan with the situation. 

There’s absolutely no regrets as he saves Delirious's number into his own phone. He’ll deal with his older bro later.

Setting the phone back on the table, Smitty waves at the sleeping Evan and slips out of the room, ready to find John and go on an adventure.

* * *

"Of course I'm in," John grins. "Why wouldn't I be?"

Smitty breathes a sigh of relief as he sits on the top of a ramp, his discarded skateboard laying to the side. "Oh thank god. That's a good thing too since I already texted this Delirious guy to meet us here."

For a second, John looks a bit worried, but then he ruffles his fluffy hair and laughs. His many rings glint in the afternoon sun. "Every day is a fuckin' adventure with you, dude."

Smitty's cheeks flush a pale red but then turns his attention to his phone as it buzzes.

Delirious: lmfao okay kid, let's see if u rlly are evan's lil bro 

Delirious: there's a shitload of people wanting info bout him aight 

Smitty: good thing I know he dated Tyler Wine in high school and he's the dude who apparently broke my big brother's heart. i'm gonna kick his ass for that, by the way. he's got this owl mask in his dorm room and he's fuckin tired as shit rn. 

Delirious: that sure sounds like vanoss. u better be right or else there’s gonna be hell to pay. 

It's not long before a huge truck pulls up to the skatepark. A man gets out with a hockey mask, looking at the few people inhabiting the park. When he catches sight of John and Smitty, he lifts up the mask and grins. 

Even from the distance they can spot the bright colored clown makeup. Smitty swallows the lump in his throat.

"Hey, you kids!" The clown guy shouts. "Yeah, you look related to Vanoss. Get your asses down here so we can fucking fix this shit."

John stays quiet as Smitty slides down the ramp, letting his Converse hit the ground before confidently striding off to the man. "You Delirious?" He asks, trying to look intimidating. "What the fuck happened to my brother."

Delirious laughs loudly and leans against the truck. "I didn't do shit, kid. You can thank Wildcat for that one. Dumbass wanted to protect Vanoss and ended up fucking him over in a matter of an hour when they haven't seen each other in six years. Got a solution?"

"Take me to Wildcat," Smitty says firmly. "I got this."

Delirious shakes his head—either in admiration or amusement, they'll never know—and guides them to the truck. "Got codenames?"

"Smitty," the younger boy tells him. John stiffens before remembering that they probably won't think it's his real name. "And that's Kyroz."

"Good names," Delirious mutters. "Get in. We have shit to do before Wildcat does something stupid. Mini can't even calm him down and that's saying something."

The boys get into the truck and sit next to a guy in an omega blindfold. He greets them with a genuine smile and a wave. “Hello! I’m Ohm, it’s nice to meet you.” 

“...Likewise,” Smitty manages as he shakes the gang member’s hand. “So where’s Wildcat?”

The guy with the devil mask, currently sitting in the driver’s seat, barks out a laugh. “We don’t go to Wildcat, kid, he comes to us.”

John just glances over at Ohm and exhales, wondering what the fuck he just got himself into. Smitty gently nudges him with a faint smile. "Thanks for coming with me," he whispers, and John just nods.

"Are you guys in middle school?" The devil mask guy asks. "Y'all seem too goddamn young for this."

"If my older brother is hurting, then it's my business." Smitty says firmly as Delirious drums on the dashboard. The truck heads through the city and Cartoonz just cranks up the music, trying not to wince as Delirious starts yelling along.

Smitty just wants to get this over with so his brother can relax and be happy. If anyone deserved to be happy, it was Evan. His bro had stuck up for him when he had gotten bullied in the 6th grade, when his parents constantly left and then handed his care over to Evan the moment he turned 18. 

And now Evan was hurting because of this bitch. The growl that comes out of Smitty's throat is involuntary and John tries not to smile. 

Eventually, Cartoonz pulls into the apartment complex that Evan first visited several days ago. Smitty's hopping onto the pavement before Cartoonz even parks and he marches inside, determinedly pushing open the door and waltzing inside. "Where the hell is Wildcat?" He snaps, hoping his presence will startle someone. 

There's only a few guys eating an early dinner at a table. They look up, surprised, and then one guy gasps and gets up. "You look like Ev."

"You know my brother?" Smitty's stance changes to a fighting one. John trails in after him, lazily looking at his rings as Delirious, Cartoonz, and Ohm walk in behind them. "Where's the asshole."

"First off, introductions because I want you to know us as friends. I'm Brian, that's Nogla, and Anthony. Marcel's using the bathroom." The Irishman explains. "Evan met us a few days ago before Tyler decided to be an idiot."

"I'm Smitty and that's Kyroz." Smitty inclines his head towards the other 8th grader. "I just wanna talk to Tyler. Maybe punch him once, but we'll see."

Ohm waves his phone. "He's already on the way, I talked to Mini and said that Evan's younger brother is here to talk to him."

Nogla chokes on his pasta and Anthony roars in laughter, causing Brian to grin. "This is gonna be super fuckin' interesting."

Marcel heads down the stairs and blinks as he acknowledges the new people in the apartment. "Is this going to be a thing now? Random ass people just show the fuck up here? I'm already anxious because of Delirious and now we've got these small ass kids with us. Who the fuck are you guys?"

"Marcel!" Brian latches onto the other gang member. "That's Evan's younger brother and that's his friend. Tyler's on his way! We might actually get to fix this!"

"Well, while you're waiting for the asshole, want some food?" Anthony offers, shoving forth a bag of Olive Garden breadsticks. "We always get bulk when we order."

Smitty immediately makes his way over and sits at the table, ignoring the instinct to run since these were, y'know, _gang members._ They don't seem that bad though. Pretty weird, but nice enough.

On cue, his phone buzzes, and Smitty groans around the breadstick as John takes the seat next to him. "It's Ev," his voice muffles as John grins. "Someone answer it for me."

Anthony leans forward as Smitt unlocks the phone. "He's wondering where you are," Panda replies, the screen lighting up his face. "You didn't tell him where you're going?"

"He doesn't know he's here," John laughs. "This was kinda a last minute plan. He snuck in while Evan was asleep and took Delirious's phone number from his phone and then texted the clown dude."

Nogla chuckles and looks at the two of them in admiration. "That was pretty fuckin' bold of ye."

"Gotta do what I gotta do," Smitty shrugs. 

In the living room, Marcel and Brian listen in. "He'd be a fun dude to have when he gets older," Brian whispers. "Seems like he's good at sneaking in and out of places."

Marcel gives him an incredulous look and runs a hand through his curls. "Dude, he's not even in high school yet."

"I know!" Brian's reddish eyes light up. "He's lean too, he'd be able to creep into awesome places we'd never dream of reaching."

Marcel opens his mouth to probably yell but clamps it shut once he spots the car pulling up. "Oh fuck," he mutters, tensing up on instinct. "He's here."

Cartoonz and Ohm have vanished to wherever so it's Delirious who answers the door, trying not to laugh as Craig gives a half-hearted shrug. "Is he actually Evan's younger brother?"

"You bet your ass he is," Delly answers. "They're both stubborn as fuck." 

Back at the table, Smitty lets out a small whine as his phone lights up. "He wants to know where I'm at."

"Just tell him," Nogla shrugs. "It ain't that big of a deal." 

Kyroz laughs a bit. "You wanna tell Evan Fong that his lil bro is hanging out with gang members and is about to talk to the guy that broke his heart? Good luck."

"It's not really a 'broken heart', he's just upset that Tyler didn't want to at least make the effort." Smitty protests as Nogla freezes with his pasta halfway to his mouth. 

The middle schooler doesn't seem to notice the extremely tall man stepping into the room with icy blue eyes glaring at everyone. 

"Ev just wanted him to at least try or something," Smitty waves his phone around. "Instead he decided to be a bitch and say no." 

Craig tries to muffle the cackle that's rising in his throat as the other gang members gape, trying not to look at Tyler.

"And another thing!" Smitty slams his hand down on the table. "It makes NO SENSE that he's been protecting Evan for so long, finally gets to see him, and then says NO. What's with that?! Sounds like a crock of bullshit if you ask me." 

Anthony coughs and doesn't even hide his smile. "For a first introduction, that was pretty good. We'll wait for the verdict from Tyler though." 

Smitty's phone vibrates and he doesn't even pay attention to it, instead turning to look at Tyler. The man's watching him with a raised eyebrow and crossed arms. "If that's him, tell him we'll be at the diner down the street from his college." Tyler says finally. "I'm gonna tell him that we need to talk." 

The 3D glasses slip down Smitt's nose as he texts his older bro, trying not to show a facial expression as an entire paragraph of red appears on the screen. John, still sitting next to him, manages to catch a glimpse of  LUCAS YOU ARE IN SO MUCH TROUBLE WHEN I GET YOU  and  IF TYLER DOES ANYTHING TO YOU OR JOHN IM GOING TO KICK HIS ASS AND BROCK'S GONNA BE MY WITNESS  and does his best not to laugh.

Smitty pockets his phone and gets up, glaring at Wildcat. "Fine." He marches up, cocks back his fist, and promptly decks Tyler in the chin due to their height differences. 

The entire room gasps with the exception of Delirious, who's cracking the fuck up by the door. "This kid is fucking hilarious!" He wheezes, leaning forward to pat Smitt on the shoulder. "Wildcat, you better make up with Vanoss because I want to see this dude more often."

Tyler rubs his chin and rolls his eyes. "Whatever. C'mon kid." 

He turns and marches out of the room, Mini putting an arm around his shoulder. "Kyroz, right?" He calls to the other boy. "Let's go, if it goes well you can see these guys later."

The gang members cheerfully wave at John, who just smirks and waves back. "See y'all later," he drawls and walks out of the apartment. "I'll be back for sure."

Smitty makes his way to the backseat with John, Craig snagging passenger while Tyler revs the engine. "I can't believe you punched Wildcat in the face!" Craig laughs, still giggling about the incident. "I'm impressed kiddo. Evan should be proud of you."

"Mhm." Smitt crosses his arms as the sun starts to set. John pats him on the leg and the two share a quick smile, finding peace in each other's presence. 

It's not long until they pull up to the diner. Craig looks so strange in his business suit and sandals while Tyler still has his dramatic ass fluff coat. Luckily he's left his pig mask and helmet in the car so it doesn't look too suspicious as they walk in.

The four sit in a booth and Mini orders milkshakes for all of them, smiling at the waitress as she takes their order. "Thank you love!" He calls out as she leaves. Tyler just huffs and Smitty takes a closer look at the guy that Evan used to date.

Tyler Wine looks exhausted, if he's being honest. His blue eyes seem a bit dull and there's rings under his eyes. His fingertips keep tapping on the table out of anxiety and he just looks really sad.

Smitty allows a bit of pity to go out to the mob boss. He hopes Tyler just made a simple mistake. 

The door to the diner opens and Evan rushes in, eyes wide as he stares at the four of them. His red jacket is wrinkled and Smitty tries not to laugh at the way Tyler jerks up, staring back at his love.

Brock follows in a bit slower, sagging in relief when he spots Smitty and John. "C'mon you two," he grumbles out. "Evan's been on my butt the whole day for not stopping you."

"You wouldn't have been able to," Smitty says cheekily as he gets up. "We're a bunch of rebellious teenagers, it's kinda in our job descriptions to do the opposite of what people tell us."

Craig waves at John and Smitt. "It was nice to meet you guys! Hopefully we can see you soon!" He says happily, grinning when the two kids wave back. "Ev, you better give Smitty a whole bunch of ice cream for this."

Evan just nods and looks at his approaching brother, eyes narrowed as he places his hands on his hips. "What the hell did you do?"

Smitty gives a half-hearted shrug. "You were moping, Tyler was being a bitch, so I stole Delirious's phone number from your phone and met the gang members that're pretty cool. I also defended your honor. I'm the best sibling you're ever gonna have."

Evan looks at John for clarification and balks when he replies, "he punched Tyler in the chin. It was pretty cool to watch."

"But you're safe? Nothing happened to you?" Evan questions the two. "No one did anything?"

"Of course not. You're a cool dude, we're cool dudes, they loved us." The white-haired teen grins. "Next time we should have dinner at their place." 

Evan lets out a ragged sigh of relief and crushes both Smitty and John in his grasp. "Thank god you're safe," he mumbles. "I had a heart attack, dude. If something had happened to you..."

"We're okay," John reassures him. "Smitt did really well with handling this. You better go to Tyler and talk, since he looks like he's getting ready to pass out."

Evan takes a glance over at Tyler and sure enough, he seems to be panicking a bit as Mini calms him down. "Fuck, you're right. Okay. Brock, please take them home. I owe ya one."

Brock nods and ushers the kids to the doors, smiling as Evan leans down to Smitty's height. "Hey kiddo," his older brother whispers. "Thank you. This wouldn't have happened without you."

He's feeling warm today. It's bubbling in his chest and he sees the sincerity in Evan's eyes and he wraps his brother in a hug. "Of course," Smitty says into his shoulder. "I'd do it again if I had to. I love you bro."

"I love you too, Smitty." Evan kisses his forehead and shoos him off to stay by Brock's side. "I'll see you guys later, I've got a mob boss to flirt with."

Smitty grins and slips his hand into John's on instinct, watching as Evan determinedly walks off to their booth. His last view of the three is Evan sitting down, Tyler looking distraught, and Craig smiling. 

"That was super dangerous," Brock begins as he leads the two to his car, "but you've also rekindled this whole thing for Evan so he could be happy, and that's something really special. Thank you, Smitty. Now, as a reward for doing this, we're getting ice cream."

"YES!" John and Smitty throw their hands in the air as they buckle their seatbelts, high-fiving. 

"And as punishment for sneaking out and hanging with gang members, you're on house arrest for the rest of the weekend." Brock says sternly, slipping into his mother-mode as he drives off. The two boys groan and then look at each other, bursting into laughter. 

"Did you see everyone's faces when you punched Tyler?" John wheezes out, cracking up as Smitty makes a noise similar to a kettle that's ready. "Dude, that was so worth it."

"Yeah it was!" Smitty laughs. The two relax into their seats and Smitty leans against his best friend, the adrenaline rush wearing off. "I better see some stupid Facebook status saying they're in a relationship when I wake up tomorrow morning," he mutters, and Brock laughs so fucking hard in the driver's seat, chuckling about it for the next several hours.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> prom was rlly good omg 
> 
> shoutout to the old guy when my date and I were at Whataburger afterwards and he hit on me for my own date ¯\\_(ツ)_/¯
> 
> honestly one of my favorite things to do is the color code for text messages, it's just. so good. 
> 
> I've always considered making a text fic like all the other rlly cool authors and add in my coding but fuck I have like, three more stories to finish.


	5. sleep well; the clock ticks on

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I always say this but this was fun to write lol
> 
> I have 3 more stories to finish...rip (I'm working on them I swear, the creative part of me has been super down lately but I'm doing my best!)
> 
> this is for you Caira <3

Evan doesn't even know where to START as the diner door closes behind him. As he stares down at Tyler, the waitress delivers the milkshakes and Craig happily pounces on one.

“Come sit down, Evan!” The business man insists. “These are really good milkshakes.”

Wordlessly, he makes his way to the table and sits across from Craig and Tyler. The former slides him a shake and relaxes into the booth, humming as he starts drinking.

Evan and Tyler are dead silent, both occasionally glancing over at Mini as they stir their milkshakes. "So what, y'all are just gonna be big bitches about this? Your brother's a riot, Evan, I wanna see him around more. I did not just watch him and Kyroz singlehandedly fix your shit for the two of you not to talk!! Now talk or I swear I will kidnap your brother."

At that, the college student turns and fixes Craig with an icy stare. "If you touch my brother, not even Tyler's protection list will save your ass."

Tyler manages a snort and tries not to smile as Craig's smile wavers. "Well!! This is important!!"

Evan stirs his shake and sighs, looking back at the man in the yellow sandals—which were still fucking ridiculous. How did he even run in them? Was it possible? What the fuck, Mini? "You make an excellent point. Fine. I'll talk to him, but you have to wait in the car."

"Deal!" Craig gets up and bails immediately, not even realizing he just stole the diner's glass as the door shuts behind him. Evan just raises an eyebrow and Tyler puts his hand to his forehead. "Dumbass."

There's an awkward silence that follows. It's a horrible feeling for the two as they sit there, glancing off to the side and hoping that the other will talk first.

Shocking them both, it's Tyler who cracks first. "Evan—" He starts to say, wincing as he ruffles his fur coat up. "Fuck, this is so much harder than I thought."

Evan opens his mouth and then shuts it. "Yeah. I'm suddenly reminded of our senior year, but opposite. Didn't you wear that ridiculous leather jacket all the time?"

At the mention of the cursed jacket, Tyler blinks and then bursts out laughing. "Holy shit, I did! That was because of my reputation, apparently I had to keep up appearances. It was hot as fuck though so every time someone complimented the jacket, I wanted to rip it off and relax in a tank or something."

"I thought it made you look hot," Evan admits as he lightly shoves his drink away. "Brock heard me constantly talk about it and you. I'm glad you're the one that approached me, even if I did lose a bet to him."

Tyler's blue eyes light up like stars. "You constantly wore bomber jackets and had a motorcycle, how could I not be interested? If I was the badass, then you were the pretty boy of the school."

At that, Evan blushes, and the two are thrown back into senior year when life was easier and wasn't complicated. It's a breath of fresh air and their former dating life spans nearly a year. First kiss, first date, final kiss, the last time they'd see each other for a very long time. 

"I'm sorry I immediately shut you down," Tyler says, and the sorrow in his eyes is real and takes Evan's breath away. "I should've at least considered it. Living a normal life isn't something I get to do, but I was really scared to even think about it."

"It's okay," Evan says softly. He fidgets in his seat and sighs. "I was asking a lot of you in that moment. We'd only been talking for what, an hour? I got too carried away and I'm sorry for that as well."

"A fresh start, then?" The mob boss had never looked so hesitant in this moment. This was the soft side of Tyler Wine that few had ever seen and Evan wanted all of him again, his own way of forgiveness. "You were my whole world, Ev. I'd like a restart."

Evan's smile is radiant and Tyler wants to wrap his love into his arms. "Of course. There's nothing else I'd rather do."

Wildcat breathes a sigh of relief and reaches across the table to take his hand. "Thank you."

The atmosphere had shifted to a calm, loving one. Back on the right track, back together again. Evan promised himself to buy Smitty whatever he wanted for his birthday and to give the other gang members a hug when he saw them again. 

Alas, if they had been paying attention, they would've seen the car swerve around the corner. They would've seen two masked figures get out of the car and storm the restaurant. They would've heard the guns being cocked and the frantic yelling. 

What they _did_ hear, however, was Craig screaming at the top of his lungs. 

Seconds later, the diner door burst open, and the figures burst in. When they catch sight of Wildcat and the guy he's with, they immediately recognize Evan's description and point their guns at him.

The other patrons are already cowering and their waitress is dialing 911 as fast as she can, fingers shaking as she hears Tyler roar, _"NO!"_

A gun goes off. 

Someone drops to the ground.

* * *

"C'mon, c'mon." Craig hisses under his breath. He's technically freaking out too, but a few years under this lifestyle causes him to mentally shut down so he doesn't panic anymore than he already is as he speeds down the street.

His phone is _still fucking ringing,_ for the love of god QUIT IT—

Finally, the one person he's waiting for lights up his screen. Craig nearly slams the green telephone symbol and huffs as a very tired voice mumbles, _"Hello?"_

"Get your ass up, we have an emergency." Craig snaps, briefly ignoring the two in the backseat.

_"Fuck you Mini, everything's an emergency to you. Coffee's out? Emergency, and you're waking my ass up to go do it all the fucking time when people like Chrissy and Simone can go do it. Actually I'd rather Simone not do it because she takes the time out of her beautiful sleep to make us tea EVERY MORNING which YOU never appreciate because you drink coffee 24/7 and even worse is the fact—"_

"TYLER'S BEEN SHOT!" Craig screeches. "HE'S BEEN SHOT, KELLY."

There's a deep sigh on the other line. _"I'm not paid enough for this. Bring him by, he'll be fine in a few hours."_

Kelly immediately hangs up and Evan speaks up from the backseat. He still has blood on his face and hands and Craig exhales slowly. "Are...are we going to your base?"

"Yeah," Mini grits his teeth as his knuckles turn white on the steering wheel. "Is he doing better back there?"

Evan glances down at Tyler, who's still grumbling under his breath. "He's still conscious." 

"Best case scenario then." Craig mutters. "If he fell unconscious already then we'd have an issue on our hands. Where'd the bullet hit?"

Vanoss still can't stop the shaking of his hands as he gently opens Tyler's fur coat, letting out the breath he was holding as he realizes there's thick padding under the coat. "It hit his stomach, but there's something in the way..."

Without warning, Tyler grasps Evan's hands and brings the startled Canadian closer. He whispers something in his ear before proceeding to pass out in Evan's arms.

Craig hears the ANGRIEST huff ever as Evan puts his hands to his face, groaning in relief and shock. "The asshole has a fucking bulletproof vest. It's just due to close range that he's hurt. What a BITCH."

Mini wheezes himself, letting out the breath he didn't realize he was holding. "Jesus fucking Christ."

Evan's bloodied face gets lit up as he texts someone from his phone; a minute later he sets it down and pretty much collapses onto Tyler, curling around him. "Asshole."

When Craig parks in his usual spot in the garage, Kelly's already waiting for him in PJs with a thermos in her hand and a tired expression on her face. She acknowledges Evan and the blood on his hands with a simple blink when he gets out of the car, and then she says, "It's nice to finally meet you, Evan. Can you hold this thermos please?"

Bemused, he takes it and watches in shock as Kelly grabs Tyler's arm and hoists him into a fireman's carry on her back. "Holy shit," Evan whispers at the grinning Craig. "She can just effortlessly carry Tyler like that?"

"Yep," Craig glances at the thermos and follows the silver-haired girl inside the building. Evan shuts the car door behind him and keeps up with Craig's pace, eyes wide as he takes in how big the base is. It's much bigger than the apartment he's been in with Delirious and his friends, and it's obvious by the way there's a stretcher waiting for Tyler when Kelly kicks open the door. A girl with long brown hair waits for them, a briefly annoyed expression on her face. 

"What'd the idiot do this time?" She calls out, and Kelly grins before setting Tyler down. She successfully shrugs him out of the fur coat and pats his cheek a bit aggressively. "Got shot at point-blank."

Tyler lazily opens his icy blue eyes and Evan breathes a sigh of relief. "Hey Kells," he slurs, and the other girl rolls her eyes. "If you didn't have the coat on I would've killed you myself."

"C'mon Chrissy, I couldn't let my boyfriend die," Tyler mumbles, and they all turn to look at Evan with raised eyebrows. The Canadian flushes and tries to turn away, eyes going wide as Craig grabs his arm and drags him forward.

"This is Evan, or Vanoss. He's gonna stay by Tyler's side." Craig says firmly. 

Kelly wheels Tyler off with Evan close on his heels and Chrissy just sighs. "You don't need to use the authority voice on us, idiot. We were gonna let him stay with Wildcat anyways."

Without any warning, the door behind Craig and Chrissy gets thrown open. Mini catches sight of Ohm's apologetic expression before he narrows his eyes. "Did Evan text one of you?"

Delirious stalks forward with Brock and Smitty by his side. "Yeah, he did."

"Is Evan okay?!" Brock asks frantically, practically curled around Smitty. The younger boy looks vacant and it's a terrifying feeling as he seems freezing cold, not the lighthearted kid that waltzed into the apartment only hours ago. 

Chrissy takes a quick look at the group; it's consisted of Delly, Evan's friend and brother, Marcel, Daithi, Anthony, Brian, Scotty, Ohm, and Cartoonz. _If I shove them into the room,_ she quietly reasons with herself, _they should probably fit. Probably._

From the back of the group, Scotty waves eagerly. "Hi Chrissy!"

Chrissy manages a snort at her favorite ex. "Hi, Scott."

"So you guys got a text from Evan and all of you decided to come?" Craig asks in disbelief as they walk down the hallway to the room the lovebirds are residing in. "You guys haven't even known him for that long."

"He's our friend!" Brian defends him. "Evan's a nice guy. We all genuinely like him."

Chrissy knows gang members pretty well. Hell, she dealt with Wildcat and Mini Ladd on a daily basis, not to mention Kelly. She knows it's just easier to let them see Evan and Tyler before they all start complaining like huskies who just bitch at anything. With that thought in mind, she just tries not to laugh as she opens a door and they all lean in to spot Kelly with Tyler.

Evan's sitting on a chair as he tries to scrub off the blood. Ohm just clicks his tongue and grabs a nearby rag, heading to the bathroom to wet it. When he comes back out, he kneels by Evan's side and starts wiping it off.

"It's not Tyler's blood," Kelly says from across the room. The group looks up at her sharply and even Tyler wheezes as he tries to move, grunting when Kelly gives him a light shove so he can lay back down. "It's not Evan's either."

Slowly, the gang members (with Brock and Smitty) turn to Craig, who's trying to sneak out of the room. He's pressing his hand to the several stab wounds and his breathing has gotten a bit heavier. 

Kelly narrows her eyes. "Dipshit got stabbed, didn't you. What happened? What the fuck did you do?"

"Saw the assholes rush to the diner," Craig snarls out. "Screamed and rushed them, got stabbed a few times in the side. Heard a gunshot, and then I ran in to kill the guys. Tyler was on the floor with Evan and I killed the other two guys before dragging them into the car. Rushed here, I've been bleeding out since then."

"If you don't get your ass over here, I'll shove you into a bathtub without cleaning and then wrapping your wound." Kelly threatens, her gray eyes flashing. "Sit your stupid ass down."

He obliges (only because Smitty looks terrified and because he's terrified of Kelly) and sits down near Tyler, feeling bitterness rise up as the rest of the group coos over Smitty and Evan to make sure they're alright. "I'm sorry you had to deal with that," Delirious says, and the hitman sounds genuinely concerned. "We should've had eyes watching the place but we thought it'd be okay."

"It's fine." Evan flashes him a small smile and Delirious grins. "Thanks for taking care of Lucas, by the way."

They all look over to the middle schooler and he's wrapped around Evan, deadly silent. "He's cold today," Evan says to help the others understand. "His mood tends to swap fast. You won't be able to get any response from him for a while, okay?"

The boys voice their agreements and Evan relaxes in the chair, thanking Ohm for washing the blood off. He turns to look at Craig who's been watching him with hazel eyes. "I'm glad you're okay dude; when you grabbed us out of there, you smeared blood on my hands and I really thought it was Tyler's. I'm sorry I didn't notice sooner. You gonna be alright?"

Craig flinches a bit as Kelly applies rubbing alcohol to the wound. "Yeah, probably. Thanks Evan. I'm sorry for being an asshole to you, I was scared that we'd lose everything we've worked for."

"That's why you let me run this sometimes," Chrissy sighs. "I'm more than capable of doing this. If Tyler or you needs to take a break, I can do it."

"That's fair," Tyler's weak voice comes from the bed. "Ev, you okay?"

Evan lets out a very heavy breath and Brian pats him on the back. "I just watched my boyfriend jump in front of a gun on instinct to protect me and I think I'm still in shock from it. Other than that, I'm doing pretty good."

Brock lets out a yawn and alerts Nogla and Anthony. "Sorry guys," he murmurs sleepily, "I wasn't expecting to get called out here. Pardon me if I yawn." 

"You can stay at the base." Chrissy offers. "Tomorrow's Sunday. Or is it still Saturday? Fuck, it's been a long day."

"I'm taking you up on that." Evan gets up and effortlessly hoists Smitty with him, setting his brother on his shoulders. "Tyler, I'm gonna go sleep, and then I'm going to take you on a date tomorrow to make up for this." 

"If you let me make sure you're alright, I'll give you the green light to go on the date," Kelly tells Tyler, and the mob boss grins. "Deal. Evan, I'll see you tomorrow. Love ya."

"Love you too, chérie." Evan blows him a kiss and heads off with Brock and Smitty. Delirious gives them a lazy salute before he follows Evan with Cartoonz and Ohm at his heels. 

One by one, the gangs follow him out of the room, and it's Lui who stops by Craig. "Just to let you know, Marcel and I talked about merging our gangs and we're gonna do it. The six of us get along pretty well anyways and we can just get bigger turf."

Craig nods, watching the shorter man give him a quick peace sign before exiting with his now bigger group. He sighs and turns back to Tyler and Kelly. "Is it finally fixed?"

"Yep," Tyler grins. "You totally stole that milkshake by the way."

"Fuck off."

Chrissy leads Evan and co. to a guest bedroom, making sure they're comfortable with spare PJs and phone chargers. "Thank you for making Tyler happy," she sincerely tells Evan. "I haven't seen him like this in a very long time." 

"He's just Tyler Wine to me," Evan gives a half-hearted shrug. "I love him regardless."

Chrissy's brown eyes gleam with joy as she pats Ev on the back. "Our resident sweetheart Simone is gonna make tea in the morning, so don't forget! It's best when hot." With that last thought in mind, she says goodnight to Brock and Smitty before she leaves. 

There's a knock at the door and Delirious enters anyways, lifting the hockey mask off his face. "You doin' alright Vanoss?"

"Yeah, I'm just gonna sleep the shock off." Evan replies. He blinks in surprise at the glass of water and Aleve offered with it. "Do you just carry this wherever you go?"

"Of course." Delirious grins. Brock mutters his appreciation before downing two and going right to bed. Smitty just curls up at Evan's side and snoozes, finally relaxing for the first time in about two to three hours. 

"Listen man," Delly continues. "You've got a lot of nerve and courage and that shit is special to find. Tyler's a lucky guy and we're all glad to know you. Don't be a stranger to the rest of us, okay? Wildcat can't claim you all the time."

At that, Evan laughs loudly and the two of them grin at each other. Delirious makes his way over to fist-bump the Canadian. "Always," Vanoss promises. "I'll stop by as often as I can."

"We can also just find out when your breaks are so we can grab lunch," Delly shrugs. "It's no biggie. Thanks for being awesome, dude."

The hitman leaves and Evan relaxes into the bed, smiling at his friend and brother already asleep next to him. His phone buzzes and he glances over at it before unlocking it to look at the message. 

Tyler: goodnight my love, thank you for giving me a second chance. 

Evan: always <3 sweet dreams! make sure to wear something decent tomorrow, I heard the mini golf place is gonna be fun. 

Tyler: holy FUCK you're the best. fair warning; everyone's gonna definitely follow us and try to be incognito. 

Evan: I think I'll be okay with that :) goodnight chérie. 

Tyler: goodnight Evan. sweet dreams. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a special thanks to CairaFire for giving me the inspiration to have Tyler get shot in our chat
> 
> it was purely on accident from her and that was probably the nicest twist I could give this story :)
> 
> I graduated a week ago love y'all <3

**Author's Note:**

> based off that one writing prompt where it was like; "no gang member will harm you, and then you learn that your high school sweetheart is rlly high up gang wise and won't allow anyone to hurt you"
> 
> I was like "EVAN AND TYLER" 
> 
> I considered switching the roles but I love Tyler being protective over Evan so I couldn't help myself lol


End file.
